Choice Of Words
by CR-Rookie
Summary: A "What If?" story about when Lelouch accidentally geassed Euphemia...except here, the words he chooses are much different, leading to much different results.


A live broadcast for Princess Euphemia's inaugural ceremony of declaring the opening of the Special Administrative Zone of Japan was being filmed in the region's largest stadium. Princess Euphemia knew that the eyes of the world were on her at this time - not just Japan, but the Chinese Federation, her own home nation of Britannia, and other nations as well, so she could not afford to do anything less than fully deliver on what she'd promised all the people of Japan (called "Elevens" in Britannian society) and set up a special zone where they could be granted all the rights that a Britannian citizen would be allowed and live free of the harsh oppression that her royal family had imposed upon them before. Euphie had dedicated much of her time and effort to the working of this plan, and she wanted more than anything to see it through and watch it succeed, for herself, for her Japanese knight and lover Suzaku Kuruugi, and for the Japanese masses whose plights she empathized with so much.

Unfortunately for Euphie, her half-brother Lelouch Vi Britannia, in the guise of the masked rebel known as Zero, had appeared to spoil the moment. Euphie was not sure what his intentions behind this intrusion were but, knowing that it was Lelouch underneath that helm and feeling he could be trusted, the pink-haired princess agreed to meet with him in a backroom, assuring Suzaku and the others that she'd come out of this alright.

Lelouch, however, actually planned on totally disrupting the SAZ plan and ensuring that the rebellion of the Japanese against his father's empire would go on. His supporters within the Black Knights had been ordered to stay posted elsewhere in Area 11 and keep their watch on the live broadcast should anything arise that could require their immediate attention and action.

"Even though the cameras are off, you're still being extremely careful, aren't you?" said Euphie once she and Lelouch were alone in the back room together.

"I've been in hiding for a long time due to a certain empire, I'm afraid." Lelouch replied as he uncovered a small firearm he'd been concealing. This is a needle gun made from ceramic and bamboo. It can't be picked up on a metal detector."

Euphie was taken aback by this gesture and Lelouch's words about it, and she began to grow a bit nervous. "Lelouch...you would never shoot me, would you?" the princess asked.

Lelouch shook his head and responded "No. I would never do that...you'll be doing the shooting, Euphie!"

"Huh?" Euphie gasped out in disbelief over what she swore she'd just heard him say.

"This ceremony is being broadcast globally, so the world is going to witness a Britannian princess shoot Zero." Lelouch continued "What do you think will happen next?"

"Rioting would break out, I'd imagine?" Euphie replied.

"Right." said Lelouch "Zero will become a martyr tricked into a death trap and instantly, your popularity will crash and burn."

Euphie felt herself getting angered by her half brother's words - at what he was suggesting had to happen at this time. For the life of her, she could not understand why he was talking to her like this. What had come over him? "What kind of nonsense are you saying? You should just help me to rebuild Japan!" exclaimed Euphie with a stern expression.

"If you force this upon us from on high, then you're as bad as Clovis was!" Lelouch retorted, a comment that made Euphie gasp, appalled and discomforted at the words. "All tasks at hand have cleared." continued Lelouch with an air of confidence "After hovering near death, Zero will be met with cheers when he makes a miraculous recovery 'cause people don't give a damn about reason and nobody can resist miracles."

Lelouch outstretched his arm at Euphemia, gun in hand. "Now...take the gun." he said "There can only be one Messiah for the people of Japan."

At that precise moment, something shook Lelouch. He staggered backwards, clutching his left eye, groaning as though something was giving him great agony. The gun that he'd held in his hand dropped to the floor.

"Lelouch, what's wrong?" asked Euphemia in concern, making her way over to where her brother was reeling in pain.

"STOP IT!" roared Lelouch, swiping his hand against Euphie's to push her away from him as he straightened himself back up from his vulnerable position "Stop giving me your pity! Spare me your charity! This is something I have to achieve on my own! So for that, I will now taint your hands with blood, Euphemia Li Britannia!"

"That isn't my name! I've renounced it!" Euphie objected.

Lelouch was caught off guard by this statement. "There'll probably be a formal announcement issued by the homeland about it any day now, but I've given up my claim to the throne!" Euphie elaborated.

"But why?" asked Lelouch with confusion in his voice "This isn't 'cause you accepted Zero, is it?"

"Well, of course!" Euphie replied, a cheery, accepting grin appearing on her face "I have to accept the price for doing something so selfish - those are the consequences."

"I suppose you did it for my sake?" Lelouch mused.

Euphie couldn't help but giggle a bit at that statement. "As conceited as you ever were, but no, I did it for Nunnally!"

Hearing his sister's name surprised Lelouch, as Euphie explained "She told me herself - all I want is to be with my brother and that's all that matters, I need nothing more."

"For that petty reason?" asked Lelouch in almost total disbelief.

"That's right, Lelouch!" Euphie replied with an eager nod and a bright smile "That's how I made up my mind! It made me stop and seriously reflect on what was truly important to me in life. You understand now? I'm not giving up anything that has significant meaning or real worth to me. And you don't need to worry - I won't tell anyone about you."

Lelouch stood silent for a moment, then a smirk appeared on his face as he let out a laugh of great amusement. "And Cornelia?" he asked.

"It's not like we'll never see each other again." Euphie replied.

Lelouch chuckled and declared "Euphie, you are a fool. An amazing fool!"

"I know I'm not as smart as you, Lelouch." said Euphie, hanging her head a bit "I've never been able to beat you at games or studies, however..."

"However" Lelouch interrupted, finishing for her "You managed to end up winning all of it."

Lelouch gazed at Euphie with a fond look, no hints of the malice and intensity he'd had with him a while ago "When I think of you, I don't think of you as a viceroy or a princess. I always see the plain little Euphie you used to be."

"Then will you join plain little Euphie and help her?' asked Euphie with a bit of a laugh and a small, sheepish smile on her face.

"You are...you are the worst opponent I have ever faced." Lelouch said as he made his way closer to Euphie, extending his hand for her to shake, which she did. "You win. I'll admit my plans to help out your special zone. But not as your supporter, alright?"

"Alright." said Euphie with a very pleased looking smile. She paused for a bit and then let out a small giggle and said "So you haven't got very much faith in me, have you? Did you honestly believe that by simply threatening me, I would shoot you?"

"No, you've got it all wrong." Lelouch replied "When I really want people to follow my orders, they will not resist me. Whether it's to shoot me, grant pardon to Suzaku, or any order at all!"

Euphie stared blankly, unsure what to feel about Lelouch's implausible sounding words that were offset by his seeming total sincerity and serious tone. "Oh, now you're just being silly!" the princess laughed "Stop playing around with me!"

"I'm serious!" Lelouch insisted "If I ordered you, for instance, to..." He took a brief pause to contemplate what hypothetical command he could describe to his half sister, and in an instant, it came to him "..._do a strip dance in front of all the Japanese out there, maybe even try and command them all to undress before you as well_, you'd totally do it!"

What Lelouch could not have foreseen was that at that exact moment, his Geass went off, registering what he'd just said as though it were an actual command he'd just given to Euphemia. Euphie's eyes were pulled open by an unseen force as the Geass command entered her conscious mind. "N-no" the pink-haired princess stammered out in a low voice, knowing that what she was about to be made to do could have serious consequences for what she'd worked towards, but she was powerless to stop the order from sinking in.

As Euphie clutched her forehead and began to reel backwards, her petite, well dressed body shaking all over from the sensation, Lelouch grew terribly worried for her. Then it dawned on him what had to have just happened, and before he knew it, Euphie was running down the hallway, making her way to the doorway out to the balcony where she was to address the crowds in the stadium. "NO!" Lelouch cried out "NO NO NO NO NO NO NO! EUPHIE, DON'T!"

The exiled Britannian prince gave chase but tripped over himself just as Euphie was headed towards the open door. "GET BACK HERE, **I _COMMAND_ YOU!**" Lelouch screamed from down on the floor, but his voice could not even penetrate Euphie's eardrums and register in her mind. With her eyes glazed and an oblivious smile on her lips, the princess was dead set on carrying out the Geass command that had been given to her.

Before droves of people, many of them Japanese but some Britannians were attending the event as well, Princess Euphemia appeared, a look of giddy anticipation on her lovely face. Everyone in the crowds waited in equal anticipation for the viceroy's words.

"HELL-OOOOO, PEOPLE OF AREA 11!" Euphie shouted in a very peppy, cheerful tone "ARE YOU READY TO GET YOUR SHARE OF ALL MY ROYAL JEWELS?"

Most of the crowd didn't know how to respond to such a declaration. Some clapped and cheered and shouted, as though saying "Yes", but most were in silence. "What did she just say?" Cornelia wondered "What does she think she's doing?"

"ALRIGHT!" Euphie cheered "THEN LET'S GET IT OOOOON!" With that exclamation, the princess reached down to the lower part of her dress and began tearing it right off of her, crumpling it all up and casting it aside. The crowd started murmuring amongst itself: what could be going on here? Was this some new inaugural confirmation ritual that the royals had thought of? Was the viceroy princess going to throw articles of her clothing to the audience? Was this her way of rejecting her position of royalty? No one quite knew what to make of it, but there were hollers all over the stadium as the princess cast aside her lower garments. Many Britannians were trying to adjust their eyes' gaze, in disbelief at what they were seeing.

Once Euphie had enough room to move her legs freely, she wasted no second in beginning to kick her legs up, trot around on the balcony, twirl around and sway her body around as though to music that wasn't playing. By this time, Lelouch had come to his feet and was looking right out the door at what was now commencing as result of his Geass command gone awry. He was appalled at what he was watching. Shame, dread, and secondhand embarrassment filled him and he wanted to either go put a stop to this madness or turn his head and look away...but he found he could do neither.

"How's that, Japan?" Euphie called out to the audience "How'd you like that, huh? Well...you're going to positively love this!" Euphie began tearing off what little remained of her blouse, exposing her frilly looking panties in front of the whole stadium. There was an uproar of mixed reactions in the crowd, with many even starting to bolt from their seated places out of sheer discomfort or feeling offended that the viceroy princess would build their hopes up only to make a mockery of the whole affair and waste their time like this. The Britannians present were also going into a frenzy, but this did nothing to deter Euphemia as as shed every article of clothing below her waist and continued to dance around.

From where she was watching the broadcast in Area 11, Kallen Kouzuki was rolling on the floor laughing her butt off. She was cackling out loud in a boisterous, maniacal way and slamming both her fists down hard on the floor at a rapid pace, tears of hilarity pouring from her eyes and down her cheeks. "OHOHOHOHOH MAN!" Kallen gasped out in between her frenzied guffaws "THAHAHAT STUPID BRITANNIAN, SHE'S GONE AND LOST IT! IT'S TOO MUCH! BWAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Cornelia was now standing up, demanding that others accompany her in retrieving her sister and taking her out of there at once, especially with the fear that she might need to be hospitalized due to temporary insanity. But the show wasn't over yet - after giving a saucy wink to the audience, Euphie began tearing off the clothes she wore around her midsection, her dance moves getting more and more erratic with each part of her dress she tore off.

At this time, Emperor Charles Vi Britannia was seething in fury, roaring out obscene statements about what he was watching and wondering why a daughter of his would make such an embarrassing spectacle of herself and by association demean the image of the Britannian royal family and their entire empire. Prince Schniezel from his spot was transfixed by what he was seeing. The Chinese Federation were looking to blind themselves in order to prevent gazing upon the princess' halfway nude form. Kallen, meanwhile, was now laughing hard enough to gag herself as she kicked her legs around in the air. The hot-blooded and stubborn girl was laughing so hard that at this point her skin was flushed almost as red as her hair. "I TOLD HER SHE WAS A USELESS ROYAL PUPPET WHOSE WORK WAS NO GOOD HERE!" she exclaimed "DUMBASS PRINCESS PROBABLY SHOULDA LISTENED! _HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA_!" Kallen's shoulders shook uncontrollably and sweat was trickling down her reddened skin, she was taking such enjoyment out of this!

By the time Britannian security were at last making it up to the balcony where their princess was dancing, Euphemia shouted out to the crowd "Alright, all you Elevens! Now I command all of you to follow your generous princess' lead! ALL OF YOU, _UNDRESS BEFORE ME_!" This bizarre command given by the bizarrely enthused princess caused the biggest confusion and commotion out of the crowd by far, and Euphie actually seemed to take notice of this. "You don't want to? But it's so easy and liberating! Let me SHOW you all!" The security forces restrained Euphie a few seconds too late, for by the time they were dragging her off by her arms, she'd already taken off her panties and turned her back to the crowd. Princess Euphemia's bare royal rear end was on display for all the world to see.

And somewhere, at that very moment, Kallen bust a rib and wet herself laughing.

The security guards put all their force into dragging Euphie backwards away from the balcony and through the doorway, with the princess struggling to free herself and shouting protesting words all the while. After what seemed like a whole hour spent on trying to get Euphie to be compliant, someone used a taser on her, making her dizzy and ultimately rendering her unconscious.

In the days following this incident, headlines of the event gone so horribly wrong, which had been broadcast live and witnessed by so many, ended up skewering the credibility of the SAZ plan and of the Britannian royals who'd pushed for it. Much of the royals' time was now dedicated to addressing the scandal and trying to mitigate the damage with allied nations who now no longer held them in high regard. Euphemia became known as the "dumb_ass_ princess" (with emphasis placed on the word "ASS") to many, and Suzaku, positive that Zero made this happen somehow given how Euphie was seen entering a room with him prior to coming back out onto the balcony, was out seeking vengeance.

For Euphie's part, the event was all a blur to her, as when she tried to recall it she could only remember the feeling of dressing down, the music that had been ringing in her own head, and for some reason, the sound of Kallen laughing herself hoarse. When shown footage of what she had done, the poor princess could barely make it through the whole thing before fainting from sheer humiliation. And seeing as she could now no longer go outside without getting met with either laughter and derision, judgmental glances, or reactions of visible fear from those who were just plain freaked out by her, it was decided Euphie would be kept out of the public eye for the time being.

Euphemia now spent much time sulking in her room, wondering what in the world had come over her that day and feeling like a useless, pitiful failure who couldn't end up fulfilling her promises to the Japanese and who only made herself and her family look ridiculous. She wondered why she ever bothered with the SAZ and had thought it a workable plan to begin with if all it led to was her total humiliation right at the cusp of success.

But Euphie wasn't alone in feeling like a failure. Lelouch was sulking over his part in bringing this about as well.

"I suppose we ought to let this whole thing run it's course" said C.C matter-of-factly "Britannia might be left crippled by their lack of credibility and support now. That princess might have done your father's empire in for us."

After a prolonged silence, Lelouch murmured "Yeah. You're right."

_"Damn you, Euphemia. Truly the worst opponent I have ever faced."_


End file.
